U.S. Serviceman after Fukushima: “Radiation that high becomes its own source of power… It will actually feed, it will grow” — 60,000cpm helicopter part, “The nuclear guys just kind of went nuts” (VIDEO)

Michael Sebourn, (in charge of decontaminating aircraft after 3/11) Senior chief mechanic for the helicopter squadron based at Atsugi: The army pulled out a 60,000 CCPM radiator out of one of their helicopters. It was absolutely crazy, crazy circumstance. The nuclear guys just kind of went nuts and deep sunk this thing into a barrel of water and other chemicals and put a huge barrier around it, you know ‘police line do not cross’.

Radiation actually feeds itself, and you get radiation that high it becomes its own source of power and energy. It won’t go away, storing in containers is not going to do anything. It will actually feed, it will grow, and so every day readings around the area have to be taken — at this point 5 feet from that barrel we’re reading 750 CCPM, you just have to continue to monitor that.

22 comments to U.S. Serviceman after Fukushima: “Radiation that high becomes its own source of power… It will actually feed, it will grow” — 60,000cpm helicopter part, “The nuclear guys just kind of went nuts” (VIDEO)

I watched the video posted a few days ago about the air conditioner filter from Tokyo. I wonder what the engine filters and air filters from around Fuku are like? More than like like similar to this helicopter air filter. And if that is the case then these people are driving around with tiny reactors growing stronger every day. We will start seeing tiny nuclear melt downs all over the place. Imagine a mechanics shop near there. The garbage bin will have to be stored in a lead casket.

For car parts made in Japan, air filters may not be the biggest problem. During testing of the engine and at final checks and transport the engine may only be running for about twenty minutes. While the count may be high on the air filter leaving the factory and driving onto the ship, it will probably not have the soaking exposure that the seats and carpet would have.

Foam is repeatedly compressed, expanded, and bent during the assembly of the seat cushion sucking in ambient particles for hours. Each time that the car is driven off of the final test line to the staging area the seat also gets a big whiff of particles as the technician gets out.

As for the carpets, they act like dust harvesters. While they do use place-mats during assembly, the place-mats are not complete barriers. Anyone visiting a car sales lot with recently manufactured cars using Japanese made components may want to bring a radiation detector.

1. RadChick is another site making a buck by exploiting people's fears. Fear-porn pays only so long as what you say is scary, so there's absolutely no attempt at objectivity on such sites. The same as 2nd Amendment sites that sell guns — you don't go there to learn something; you go there to get a fear-fix.

2. I highly doubt whether a squid helicopter mechanic is trained in nuclear energy. If he was, he'd be working in a submarine or a carrier nuke plant.

3. This headline comment is absolute fear-mongering BS: "Radiation actually feeds itself, and you get radiation that high it becomes its own source of power and energy."

The only context I know of where such a statement could be considered accurate is 1) a fissile core at critical mass, or 2) in a radioactive thermocouple generator, in which case the "feeds itself" is still not accurate.

I doubt you know more about the situation than the person in charge of decontaminating the aircraft over there.

He says "Radiation actually feeds itself, and you get radiation that high it becomes its own source of power and energy… It will actually feed, it will grow, and so every day readings around the area have to be taken"

He is at least partially correct when he says that it feeds itself. While overall, the total energy of a lump of material is dwindling by radiation, the particles are like the balls of a pinball machine. When a particle is emitted, it can be captured by another atom, cause another atom to emit a particle or more or put the atom into a meta state. For heavier atoms, sometimes two or more atoms can split off and they can either be radioactive or susceptible to being irradiated. When an atom emits a particle it does not have to become stable and product can actually be more deadly. Radiation is not an event that tends to have one emission then be done.

Actually, that's exactly what most radiation is. Only neutron radiation is capable of doing what you describe, activating other atoms.

In this case that's not a problem with the discourse though – the only rational explanation for Unit 3's explosion seen on television was that the rector blew its containment. NRC transcripts have also already confirmed that neutron emitters were released in the surroundings.

The senior chief mechanic's explanation is clearly not a scientific one, though, so it's hard to say anything definite on it. But judging from the description they've indeed got neutron emitters, such as plutonium. Also for once, Enenews headline seems actually accurate to what has been said, and indicates it's a quote.

Thanks for the valid responses to that post. Even this dumb equipment mechanic can understand the basic principles of nuclear decay.
The industry has for years fed off of the perceived ignorance of the average intellect. Their only strategy is to shout down the content of the thread and ignore the context.
The "squid helicopter mechanic" is obviously smart enough to know that putting very smelly kak in a box, makes the box smell like kak too…

Sorry buddy, but if you listened to the interview you would have noticed there are no commercials. If you went to any one of my 20 websites you would see there are no ads. You know why? Because I have never have made a PENNY off anything I do…the information is too important not to be shared FOR FREE in my opinion. And I will do it that way as long as I can. The only thing I ever got was a donation of a used laptop when mine died from a listener of my show so my broadcasts wouldnt be interrupted.

My main message is to share love, caring and concern for your fellow man, again if you had actually listened to the interview you might have caught that and learned something new.

Don't feel put upon, eyechix. Pierpont just promotes Ann Coulter. She (Pierpont and Ann Coulter) believes that radiation is good for you and that not one person in the whole world has ever died because of radiation poisoning.

The nuclear industry can only operate by criticizing everyone and everything but themselves and nuclear energy.

No worries I love ya girlfriend and so do many others that frequently check out your FB page and listen to nuke radio. You SHOULD be making money for all the time and effort but as we know money is a big part of the problem with the nuke industry but also, I think, possibly the solution as it becomes more apparent to these energy companies that to make necessary modifications and upgrades just isn't cost effective for them thus if I worked for the NRC I would make all these plants upgrade with submersible pumps, etc and make it so expensive that they throw in the towel so to speak. I digress, really radchick don't let that post upset you there's one in every crowd but the majority of us know how hard you work, donating your time and research to keep us informed and I for one am very appreciative. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do.

2. He was referring to the NBC cleanup guys, who are thoroughly trained in NBC cleanup. I know NBC-trained people, they're scared shitless with what's going on.

3. "Rare events that involve a combination of two beta-decay type events happening simultaneously (see below) are known. Any decay process that does not violate conservation of energy or momentum laws (and perhaps other particle conservation laws) is permitted to happen, although not all have been detected. An interesting example (discussed in a final section) is bound state beta decay of rhenium-187. In this process, an inverse of electron capture, beta electron-decay of the parent nuclide is not accompanied by beta electron emission, because the beta particle has been captured into the K-shell of the emitting atom. An antineutrino, however, is emitted."

@Peerpoint
don't worry about all these nuclear naysayers. Everyone knows that if we go solar or wind we'll all freeze in the dark. Kinda like the Germans are with their 500Mw of installed PV. They could have built a nuke plant instead but noooo they blew it on a bunch of decentralized mini passive nuclear reactors instead. What a bunch of crazies.

Meanwhile, back in the US, our ultra liberal media is all over the ongoing Fukushima disaster right? Oh, hasn't that been cleaned up? Yes peerpoint, remember – just think positive thoughts and smile. It will neutralize that extra neutron for you. If i were you, i'd head out to a sushi place on the west coast and order up some blue fin tuna. enjoy!

Any one wonder WHERE all the contaminiated with PU and stuff equipment went? Wonder if WIPP was an ending location of those items. You know, the site with the "radioactive process" going on?? 2 + 2 does sometimes make 4 in a base 10 system.

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